Mermaid
Mermaids are a species of aquatic beings which are present in the mythology of several cultures. They are most commonly depicted as having the upper body of a woman and the lower body of a fish or other aquatic animal; and their appearance may range from stunningly beautiful to grotesquely beastlike, depending on the reports. Although they're almost invariably depicted as intelligent beings, their behavior too may vary greatly, ranging from hostile to friendly, depending on each story. The existence of Mermaids has been recorded worldwide, in both sea and freshwater. Overview Mermaid stories have been widely present in human culture, dating back to thousands of years and even earlier. In both myth and popular culture, they may take a number of forms. They usually combine features of humans and sea creatures, but whether they are depicted as predominantly mammalian, piscine or reptilian varies. As the name suggests, they're most commonly female. The male form is usually called Merman, and the name Merfolk is generally used to refer to both genders. The Irish-English word Merrow is generally thought to mean the same as Mermaid, although some may claim there are differences between them. Folkloric Portrayals European Traditionally, legends have often depicted Mermaids as dangerous creatures, supernaturally linked to floods, storms or shipwrecks. An especially common trait is that they enchanted sailors with their beauty and hypnotic singing, and dragged them underwater to their death. All of these ideas have historically been associated with female water spirits and creatures such as the Sirens of Greek mythology, the Morgens of Celtic mythology, and the freshwater Nixies of Germanic tradition. All of these may have been sources of inspiration for the modern Mermaid tales. Other inspirations may include the aquatic Nymphs of Greek mythology, such as the oceanic Nereids and the freshwater Naiads; as well as other female freshwater spirits such as the Asturian Xanas and the Slavic Rusalka. Mermaids may also be linked to the female water elementals called Undines, first described by the alchemist Paracelsus. The idea that an Undine has no soul, but may acquire one by marrying a human, was the main source of inspiration for Hans Christian Andersen's tale The Little Mermaid, which has since become one of the most famous works featuring Mermaids. Asian The most typical type of Mermaids (sea-dwelling; upper half of a woman, lower half of a fish) are also present in the mythology of Southeast Asian peoples. In the Philippines, they're known as Sirena. Their male counterparts, however, are not similar to traditional Mermen. Rather, they're a humanoid race with fish-like features, similar to the fictional Gill-man, and are known as Siyokoi. Thai myth features the story of a Mermaid princess called Suvannamaccha. The Javanese sea goddess Nyai Roro Kidul is typically depicted as a Mermaid. Meanwhile, traditional Japanese folklore depicts a different kind of Mermaid-like creatures known as the Ningyo. Far from the beautiful sea maidens of other parts of the world, the Ningyo is a grotesque being which only has the face of a woman and the entire body from the neck-down is fish-like. They may also have monkey-like faces and their voice is described as soft and similar to a bird's singing. While their flesh has a pleasant taste and brings great longevity to those who consume it; catching one of them was also believed to be a source of misfortune and catastrophe, so fishermen typically threw them back in the sea. A different Japanese species would be the Amabie, which has a bird-like beak and is also described as covered in scales from the neck down. In Indian mythology (Hinduism, Buddhism and others) Mermaids might be linked with the Apsaras: shapeshifting female spirits which inhabit clouds and water bodies. Another possible connection would be the aquatic Nāgas (snake people), which in turn may be related to oriental Dragons and Sea Serpents. Others African Mermaids include most notably the Miengu (singular: Jengu) and the Mami Wata. The Amazonian Mermaid is called Iara, as featured in Tupi and Guaraní mythology. Another South American example is the Sirena chilota of the Chiloé Islands. Modern Portrayals Nowadays, Mermaids are still commonly depicted in popular culture, including literature, comics, television, films and video games. They're most usually given the appearance of a beautiful woman with a scaly fish-like tail. In order to facilitate their interaction with human characters, these works will often give Mermaids the supernatural ability to temporarily shift their tails into a pair of legs, thus acquiring a fully human appearance and the ability to walk on land. In several works (especially those primarily aimed at children), Mermaids will be depicted as living in an underwater monarchy ruled by King Neptune: who will then be almost invariably portrayed as an old, wise and benevolent Merman. Also, in order to avoid nudity, the Mermaids will sometimes be shown to cover their breasts with seaweed or shells, or in some cases, even wear human clothes. Curiously, these traditional-looking Mermaids will most often be depicted as friendly creatures, which may hide from humans, but will readily save shipwreck victims from drowning (exactly the opposite of what most of them did in the old myths) and bring them safely to the shore. It's extremely common to have Mermaids falling in love with a human male, rather than the other way round. Sometimes, they will be able to have children with humans. Alternatively, some works of horror, fantasy and/or science fiction will typically feature more grotesque and even monstrous Mermaids with predominantly reptilian or piscine features and sometimes shapeshifting abilities. In these cases they might be linked with legends of fish-men and abyssal humanoids. Attempts to produce more scientifically plausible, fully mammalian Mermaids aren't unheard of either, an example of which would be the creatures from the Animal Planet mockumentary Mermaids: The Body Found. Cryptozoology Mermaids are also cryptids, as even today there are still numerous reports of Mermaid sightings all over the world. Perhaps the most well-known historical case is the Mermaids sighted by Christopher Columbus in the Caribbean Seas in 1493. It's often said that Columbus had actually observed manatees, which he mistook for Mermaids. A particular infamous case in the cryptozoological community is the taxidermy hoax known as the "Fiji Mermaid", which is created by combining parts of fish and monkeys, and are often sold in curiosity shops. A similar case, although not always directly linked to Mermaids, is the "Jenny Haniver": a semi-humanoid fake sea creature made from the corpse of a stingray. Mermaids in cryptozoology may also be sometimes linked with mythical reptilian "fish-men" such as the Adaro and the above-mentioned Siyokoi, as well as Sea Serpents in general. It's perhaps significant that in Filipino folklore, the Siyokoi is simply the male form of the Sirena (Mermaid). The historically reported Steller's Sea Apes are also of interest, being purportedly a species of oceanic primates. Works Featuring Mermaids Literature: *''Harry Potter'' series, by J. K. Rowling *''The Little Mermaid'', by Hans Christian Andersen *''Peter and Wendy'', by J. M. Barrie *''The Sea Fairies'', by L. Frank Baum *''The Sea Lady'', by H. G. Wells *''Wet Magic'', by Edith Nesbit Comics: *''Doctor Who'' - "King Neptune's Guests" *''Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch'' *''One Piece'' *''Superman'' Audio Stories: *Big Finish's Doctor Who - "Cryptobiosis" TV Shows: *''H2O: Just Add Water'' *''The Little Mermaid'' *''Mermaids: The Body Found'' *''Sabrina the Teenage Witch'' *''Sanctuary'' *''The Snorks'' *''Sofia the First'' *''Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' *''Destination Truth'' *''Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files'' Films: *''King Neptune'' *''Miranda'' *''Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides'' *''She Creature'' *''Splash'' Video Games: *''The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening'' Gallery Mermaid-DoctorWhoKingNeptune'sGuests.jpg|Mermaid from the Doctor Who comic "King Neptune's Guests". Mermaid-DragonBall.png|Roshi meets a Mermaid in Dragon Ball. Mermaids-Disney.jpg|Mermaids from the Disney cartoon King Neptune. TheLittleMermaid'sSisters-AnneAnderson.jpg|''The Little Mermaid's Sisters'', by Anne Anderson. MermaidMelodyPichiPichiPitch.png|The Mermaids from Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch. MermaidOfMaracotDeep.jpg|A kaiju-sized Mermaid from the sci-fi story The Mermaid of Maracot Deep. Mermaid-Miranda1948.jpg|Miranda and her child from the 1948 film Miranda. Mermaids-Neverland.jpg|Mermaids which inhabit Neverland in J. M. Barrie's Peter and Wendy. Mermaids-PiratesOfTheCaribbeanOnStrangerTides.jpg|Swimming Mermaids from Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. MermaidSally-Sanctuary.jpg|Sally from Sanctuary. Mermaid-TheSeaFairies.jpg|''The Sea Fairies'', by L. Frank Baum. Mermaids-Snorks.jpg|Three (human-sized) Mermaids and two small Snorks from the Hanna Barbera cartoon series The Snorks. Splash.png|Madison from Splash. Mermaid-VoyageToTheBottomOfTheSea01.jpg|The Mermaid from Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea. Mermaid-WetMagic.jpg|Three children befriend a Mermaid in Wet Magic, by Edith Nesbit. Mermaid CGI.png|Destination Truth Mermaid.png|Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files See also *Mer Creature *Mermaid (Mermaids: The Body Found) *Sea People (One Thousand and One Nights) *Siren (Ice Age) Category:Cryptids Category:Aquatic Lifeforms Category:Sentient Beings Category:Sapient Beings Category:Eurasian Creatures Category:African Creatures Category:South American Creatures Category:Literary Creatures Category:Comic Book Creatures Category:TV Show Creatures Category:Movie Creatures Category:Video Game Creatures Category:DC Universe Category:Disney Universes Category:Doctor Who Universe Category:Legend of Zelda Universe Category:Pirates of the Caribbean Universe Category:Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea Universe